by Shelly Mcrae

Created on: August 30, 2007

The succulence of the tender chicken breast, seasoned with rubbed sage and earthy rosemary, grilled to perfection, spreads like liquid velvet across your tongue. The swift crunch of cooled cucumbers, the sudden sweetness of fresh strawberries, the tangy blast of a cherry tomato as you bite down

This is the joy of health food! Gone are the days when rice cakes and wheat germ defined this much-maligned phrase. The body rejoices in nature's own bounty, and thrives on the crispness of fresh vegetables, the sweetness of fruits, the hardiness of whole grain bread, and yes, even the occasional grilled chicken breast.

Revel in romaine lettuce dressed in oil and vinegar, free of salt and preservatives. Sautee those sweet peppers in olive oil and drizzle them with dried thyme. Grill the zucchini and yellow neck squash, toss them with pasta and top it all with the tart juice of fresh lemon. The taste will delight you and your body will thank you.

Nutrition is not an ogre, a thief of culinary delights. It is not a tyrant, demanding abstinence from gastronomical pleasures. And taste is not the love slave of that treacherous trio, salt, sugar, and fat. Nutrition and taste are not enemies; they are the dynamic duo of good health, the super heroes of suppertime, the defenders of deliciousness.

Health food has shed its tie-dyed t-shirt and hand made sandals. It has become the haute cuisine, the latest fashions strutting down the supermarket runway. How is it that health food, its roots tracing back to communes and the summer of love, has transcended trendiness and risen to such heights in society?

One reason could be attributed to the recognition of foods in their more natural states as being viable cuisine by well-known chefs. Graham Kerr, known as the Galloping Gourmet, spent the first part of his cooking career saturating foods with fats. But after his wife Treena suffered a heart attack in 1986, the Galloping Gourmet reconfigured his recipes and created healthier, leaner meals. Today, Graham Kerr hosts a show called The Gathering Place. His website, www.grahamkerr.com, provides a description of the show, which says, in part, "With the help of our guests from the healthcare fields, we set out to learn about human nutrition. This shared knowledge is applied to the featured recipe of the show in preparing nutritionally rich foods for managing weight, preventing illness, and creating a happier lifestyle-all bursting with flavor."

Why this focus on flavor? Because if something doesn't taste good, it won't be eaten. And where's the nutrition in that?

The raw food movement, in which no food is cooked, is a rising trend. While its first devotion is to health, chef Roxanne Klein, in the Chicago suntimes.com article, "Raw Will Hot Trend Fly in Shivering Chicago?" describes the non-cooking style as follows, "Raw foodism is about discovering the inherent sensuousness of each ingredient and highlighting it in the final dish." This approach to healthy food is about exploring the essence of fresh produce, and teasing from it the very height of the taste sensations offered by natural foods.

Nutrition is inherent in fresh foods: the vitamins and minerals in fresh fruit and vegetables, the omega 3 fats in fish and nuts, the proteins and carbohydrates found in poultry and bread. Health food has grown up, and found its niche. It is flavorful, fashionable, and fine fare for us all.

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